Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) Shares Purchased by Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its stake in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 69.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 259,268 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 106,589 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. owned 0.06% of Target worth $27,057,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in Target by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,930,569 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,964,565,000 after acquiring an additional 1,306,552 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in Target by 13.6% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,338,729 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,532,769,000 after purchasing an additional 1,358,348 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Target by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,885,015 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,332,317,000 after purchasing an additional 470,990 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Target during the fourth quarter valued at $757,892,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Target by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,376,640 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $726,814,000 after purchasing an additional 754,883 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Target

In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.18, for a total value of $4,328,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 246,453 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,703,849.54. This represents a 15.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of TGT opened at $99.38 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $96.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $112.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.16 billion, a PE ratio of 10.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Target Corporation has a 52-week low of $87.35 and a 52-week high of $167.40.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The retailer reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.35). Target had a net margin of 3.95% and a return on equity of 25.59%. The business had revenue of $24.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.03 earnings per share. Target's revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Target Corporation will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.51%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 13th. Target's payout ratio is 49.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

TGT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Target from $97.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Target from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Target from $135.00 to $115.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Baird R W lowered shares of Target from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group set a $110.00 target price on shares of Target and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-five have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Target presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $116.70.

About Target

Target Corporation operates as a general merchandise retailer in the United States. The company offers apparel for women, men, boys, girls, toddlers, and infants and newborns, as well as jewelry, accessories, and shoes; and beauty and personal care, baby gear, cleaning, paper products, and pet supplies.

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